Moments Of Joy

Third Bite Dance’s residency at Stonelow Court on the Moments Of Joy project

From March to May 2024, Third Bite Dance company members Steve, Liz, Becky and Clare had a residency at Stonelow Court, a South Yorkshire Housing Association scheme in Dronfield. The residency involved each Third Bite Dance member leading two sessions, supported by TBD and 50+CDS Artistic Director Lucy Haighton, that then led towards a Creative Social Celebration Event.

Third Bite Dance were invited to take part in this Moments Of Joy project by arts producer and project designer and manager Cara Mcleese. This residency was a continuation of a previous Moments Of Joy project Third Bite Dance had been involved with at The Meadows care scheme in Sheffield in 2022, where sessions were led by our AD Lucy Haighton and we created ‘Our Home, The Meadows’ with the residents. You can read about our time at The Meadows here.

Same as The Meadows, this version of Moments Of Joy was designed and managed by Cara and was funded by Arts Council England. This project ran in three different housing schemes across North Derbyshire and Yorkshire.

So, what moments of joy did Third Bite Dance bring to the residents at Stonelow Court?..

First up was Steve:

Steve’s sessions involved singing, waltzing, creating a choreography to 'Moon River' as well as asking residents to finish the sentence 'When I sing I...'

Here’s what Steve said about the project: 

“I really enjoyed taking part in the project. It was great to be able to do something enjoyable that gave pleasure to other people. It was a privilege to be let into the homes and lives of this wonderful group of people”

“It was fantastic dancing the waltz with Dot, especially as she was not only able to dance but was also able to instruct me in the moves. It was wonderful to develop the choreography to Moon River with the group and then to see the group continue with this with the other facilitators”

“Working at Stonelow has made me realise that rather than merely performing what I really want to do within performing arts is to work within the community both to develop pieces of work but also to enable as wide a group of participants as possible to engage with the arts. It also made me aware that in the future having to move into such an assisted living residence would be okay and would bring opportunities for a further phase of life”

Next up, was Liz:

Liz asked residents to bring special objects to the sessions. This led to all sorts of stories being told which included going on cruises, being the Stonelow resident DJ, phone calls with loved ones and meeting the queen mother! Here’s the poem (and then later a movement sequence) that was created from these stories:

I like to keep it near me so I can feel close to people

It makes me feel secure, safe and connected

I like to have it with me

Meeting the Queen Mum, it gave me a feeling

A nice feeling

Seeing the lamp, I wished it was mine because it’s so lovely

Music means a lot to me

It gives me great joy to share it with people

They say turn it down but I turn it up and once they get going they love it and they drag me up

It was the first time me and Margaret had been on a cruise

She thought it was a block of flats!

In a taverna in Lisbon, I took a tambourine off the guy and started dancing

It made people laugh

I enjoyed it

By Dot, Eileen, David and Terry

After Liz’s sessions, it was Becky:

Becky asked residents: What's your favourite film? or do you have a favourite memory watching a film?

Answers shone light on favourite musicals such as The Sound Of Music and South Pacific, but also ranged to Scottish classic comedies like Whiskey Galore. One resident really enjoyed Mamma Mia and all the singing (except Pierce Brosnan’s!) And another resident said they didn’t know what all the fuss was about with Jaws - and they weren’t impressed with the fake shark jaws either!

One resident shared at the end of the this session:

"In a room you can be talking and people aren't listening, but here in this session everyone listens and everyone shares"

And lastly, the sessions were led by Clare:

Clare's sessions explored summer holidays and day trips out and about. We were dancing through holidays in Scotland (fighting off the midges), Scarborough (enjoying a stroll along the prom) and then a cruise to hot sunny Spain. Clare also led a game of holiday bingo: choose a number, the song plays and guess which country it's from or about. This was a lot of fun and had residents dancing to Zorba the Greek, Viva Espana and The Skye Boat song by The Corries.

After 9 fabulous weeks of sessions, it was time for our Creative Celebration Social Event!

We had fancy dress, party hats, dancing, chatting, singing, laughing and of course ate lots of cake. We shared all the creativity and joy that was created in each of the sessions. It was a real joy to end Third Bite Dance’s time at Stonelow with a party!

It was a real treat for Steve, Liz, Becky, Clare and Lucy to spend this time with the wonderful residents at Stonelow Court on the Moments Of Joy project. They plan to be back to see everyone again including Tommy, the resident tail-less cat!